Penguins of the World. Rev. ed.

Sandy Campbell is a reference librarian in the Science and Technology Library at the University of Alberta.

Originally published in 1997, there are only a few changes in this updated edition. A larger font has been used, which accounts, in part, for the increased number of pages. There are some new photos, and many of the old ones have been reversed, resized, or used in a different context. Taken from Lynch’s extensive photo archive of his many explorations into the world of penguins, the images are well composed and interesting, and the reproduction quality is excellent. The photographs are the highlight of this splendid coffee-table book.

The accompanying text is rich with the science and history of penguins (“the top of the king penguin’s egg resting against the bird’s brood patch is 9–13˚F […] warmer than the bottom”) and often chatty (“what you see […] are sex-driven individuals with three overriding thoughts: sex, sex, sex”). Much of the commentary is first-person (“Now I’m hooked on sheathbills, birds with a lifestyle to suit their lack of good looks”). Occasionally, Lynch is given to alliteration (“the troublesome tumescent ticks triumph”).

Although Lynch quotes liberally from researchers and explorers who have documented penguins, he regrettably does not reference his sources, and his Further Reading bibliography excludes many titles. Another weakness is in the population appendix: the entries are arranged by genus species rather than by the more prominent common name. To the average reader, they are simply out of order. However, the associated maps have been improved, with more intense colour for the distributions and blue for the oceans, making them more intuitive. Population status in this section has also been updated.

In spite of these anomalies, Penguins of the World is an excellent book.